Because I was out of town for most of July, Leland’s two brothers, Jon and Calvin, didn’t get proper birthday dinners and were anxiously awaiting my return so I could prepare their favorites. You may remember that last year I wasn’t able to cook due to the kitchen remodeling and we had to go out for their dinner. They were born three days apart in July so we sometimes try to combine the dinner, even though their tastes are very different. Getting the whole family together around the table can sometimes be tricky, not to mention cooking and baking in the heat. I think I told you about the year Calvin wanted fried chicken, linguine with pesto, corn on the cob, and blueberry pie, on one of the hottest days of the summer.

Jon’s favorite dinner for years has been a curried chicken salad from The Frog Commissary Cookbook. This is a great little cookbook if you’ve never seen it, and has a wonderful recipe for carrot cake. I also like the orzo salad with sesame dressing.

Calvin loves pasta with pesto, which I realize doesn’t really go with curried chicken salad but I made it anyway. I had a small bag of green beans from my CSA box so I threw those in with the pasta. Then I thought I might as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb (my husband had never heard this expression before so I try to use it as often as possible) and I boiled up a saucepan full of beets and pickled them; I had a summer’s worth of beets languishing in the crisper drawer and they are favorites of my daughter.

So we had a rather odd combination of curried chicken salad, pesto pasta, pickled beets, and peach pie for the birthday dinner. It looked pretty on the plate, though!

Curried Chicken Salad from The Frog Commissary Cookbook, 1985 edition

serves 5-6

CREAMY CURRIED DRESSING

• 1 egg
• 1 cup corn oil
• 1/4 cup vinegar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon coriander
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon cardamom
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

SALAD

• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast (for 3 1/2-4 cups cooked and cubed meat)
• 1 1/4 cups celery, sliced 1/4 " thick on the diagonal
• 2 cups cubed fresh pineapple (I used seedless red grapes)
• 1/2 cup dark raisins
• 3/4 cup salted roasted cashews or peanuts
• mixed greens or romaine

DRESSING: Whiz the egg in a food processor or blender, or whisk by hand until light-colored. Gradually add the corn oil so that it is well homogenized and thick. Add the remaining ingredients. Store in fridge while preparing salad. NOTE: You are mixing your own curry here, and if you don’t have all the spices called for, just add a little prepared curry powder if you have that. In fact, we like a strong curry flavor and I always add about a tablespoon or so of commercial curry powder on top of the other spices anyway. And if you are pregnant or have a weakened immune system this may not be the dressing for you, or you may want to add the seasonings to jarred mayonnaise, since this recipe calls for a raw egg.

SALAD: Preheat the oven to 350º. Lay the chicken breasts on a rimmed baking sheet and cover tightly with foil. Bake for 20-25 minutes until cooked through but still moist and juicy. Cool to room temperature. Cut or tear into bite-size pieces. Combine with fruit and nuts, but if using pineapple don’t add until just before serving because it will get mushy. Fold in dressing with rubber spatula, but you may not need all of it. Try garnishing with toasted coconut.